United States Attorney Ron Parsons announced that a Rapid City, South Dakota, man was charged in federal district court with Receipt of Child Pornography and Possession of Child Pornography.
Nikolas John Larson, age 39, was charged on Dec. 17, 2019. Larson appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Daneta Wollmann on January 8, 2020, and pleaded not guilty to the charges. The maximum penalty upon conviction is a mandatory minimum of 5 up to 20 years in federal prison and/or a $250,000 fine, up to lifetime supervised release, and a $100 assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund. Restitution may also be ordered.
The charges relate to Larson receiving and possessing child pornography between January 2009 and October 2019 at Rapid City. The charges are merely an accusation and Larson is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
The investigation is a joint effort between the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation, the Department of Homeland Security, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Rapid City Police Department, and the Pennington County Sheriff’s office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah Collins is prosecuting the case.
Larson was released pending trial. A trial date has not been set.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
